Nutritional Psychiatry

gg2112

Until recently, I didn't know this was a thing. Really fascinating. In the USA at least, we live in a very medicine-focused culture.

Articles worth reading:
https://theconversation.com/why-nutritional-psychiatry-is-the-future-of-mental-health-treatment-92545

https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC2248201/

So, I am not professionally studying nutrition, but I would like to. My backstory is that I know someone who has been vegan for 8 years or so – vegetarian for the 10 years before that. She has been raising her now-3-year-old son vegan since before birth. Thankfully, her baby is very healthy according to their pediatrician. That is not my point. She has been heavily plant-based, now plant-only, for many years but I worry her diet isn't as optimized for her mental health as it could be. She has been relying on medicine for mental health (bipolar and ADHD to name 2) and an auto-immune disorder for at least a decade now.

I used to take medicine for mental health, also, for at least a decade myself, but all I did was cut out caffeine and alcohol, and doing so appears to have relieved my anxiety disorder in the span of several months (my activity level remained the same otherwise; but my sleep increased as a result of cutting alcohol + caffeine; my water intake increased, as well). I have been focused on my micronutrients for the last 3 months thanks to Cronometer and I feel like a lot of previous symptoms have been relieved for my anxiety, depression, and even my ability to focus (ADHD symptoms). I used to see a therapist and psychiatrist every day for years, but I stopped recently because I just haven't felt the need to. My psychiatrist even expressed joy that she didn't need to prescribe anything for me because it seemed like I was doing fine, and she praised me for cutting caffeine and alcohol (she didn't even play a part in it, lol – she previously just kept prescribing medicine based on my symptoms despite me being transparent with my alcohol + caffeine intake)!

My dad has bipolar disorder, and my mother has general anxiety & schizophrenia and so does my brother. It isn't uncommon in general for people to take depression and anxiety for granted, that they are just a part of life. But I feel like they don't have to be, if you can focus on optimal nutrition for yourself as an individual.

Is this field (nutritional psychiatry) worth exploring further? Is it hokey? Is my understanding of its potential just a pipe dream? Or can it be possible to use food as medicine for diagnosed mental health disorders?

I'm 32 y/o. My current field is in web/graphic design (and 3D modeling/animation), but Cronometer has allowed me to run short-term N=1 tests on myself (and I plan to do more) for nutrient-related curiosities and explore the effects of nutrition further. I'm thinking about a career change into nutrition, particularly if it can help with mental health.

What do you think about nutritional psychiatry?

Susan_RD_101

@gg2112

Happy to chime in as both a dietitian and someone that's been eating a plant-based diet since 2007. First, we know that a well-planned plant-based diet is healthy and balanced for all stages of the life cycle, including pregnancy and athletics. I do recommend moms meet with an RD skilled in this area since nutrition education for infants doesn't normalize this pattern of eating.

Nutritional psychiatry is, at best, in its infancy. It would be incredible to recommend diet changes to resolve mental health conditions, but we know that this is just not an effective treatment for many. However, some people do respond phenomenally well to nutrition interventions, especially when you correct deficiencies in fibre, vitamin B12, iron, etc. My advice to anyone with a mental health condition is that diet and nutrition is complementary, but unlikely the cure to the illness.

I also wanted to mention that there can be a behavioral influence of dietary change as eating better can lead people to feel more in control, empowered, and fulfilled, which can positively impact mental well-being.

Hope this adds some perspective.

pushyami

I totally believe physical health impacts mental health and vice versa. For most of the cases, i think nutrition and diet change along with lifestyle changes can resolve. Wellbeing is a lot of aspects - Exercise, good relationships, hobbies, food, music,dance, activities. I believe medication can help in the beginning but should be tapered down or stopped after some time. I do not believe in life long medication.So i think holistic psychiatry or integrative psychiatry is the answer. Not sure if only nutrition will resolve the issues. You can try to explore ayurveda and yoga as well.

Smithsjohns

To address your question globally, most vegan diets will contain at least 20% to 30%+ of calories from fat since tofu, nuts, seeds, flax, chia, avocado are all rich sources of fat. That said, fat, https://www.myccpay.pro/ when added from whole-food sources, shouldn't interfere with your body's ability to use insulin, especially if you are active and at a healthy weight for your body.

Nemo

I believe that a healthy diet is one of the four cornerstones of health that are within our control. The other three are exercise, quality sleep and stress management. I've eased toward a healthier diet for the past 3 years since being diagnosed with athersosclerosis. My anxiety disorder has improved due to diet, exercise and good sleep, but I still need a lot of work on stress management. I'm working on that with a professional therapist.

julekuyp

I am so sorry that your whole family suffers from mental disorders, depression, and anxiety. Unfortunately, anyone can experience similar symptoms in their lives. Many people refuse help from specialists and are afraid to talk about their problems. In fact, psychological illnesses require a special approach depending on the person's individual characteristics and problems. It is very good that you take therapy, visit a psychologist and try to fight your problems. Depression Counseling is a good way to prevent the development of serious psychological disorders.

Tezzy

N-acetyl cysteine doing wondrous things for mental health

https://www.psychologytoday.com/.../201810/nac-the-amino-acid-turns-psychiatry-its-head

DyDy18

Hi! I have bipolar one disorder, and I'm a published author, mental health/vegan advocate, and mom. My comment touches upon Nutritional Psychology but mainly I'd like to focus on the amazing field of Metabolic Psychiatry, which is profoundly relevant to a ketogenic diet.

I just joined Cronometer and I found this thread and wow - with all due respect and compassion, this thread contains misinformation shared by people who obviously had the best of intentions when they wrote their comments.

I'd like to give you my background info. so you'll know where I'm coming from - please bear with me!

I take two bipolar medications that have kept me stable and thriving since 2013. I was diagnosed with postpartum bipolar in 2007, and my dad had bipolar one disorder.

I've practiced a well-formulated vegan ketogenic diet for the past 6 months. I use a Keto-Mojo ketone testing kit, I take Bulletproof or Nutiva C8 MCT oil daily, I splurge on Codeage Keto Electrolyte supplements, and I read up on the cutting-edge studies done about Metabolic Psychiatry, specifically regarding using a ketogenic diet for bipolar disorder.

I was lucky enough to have consulted with the expert ketogenic nutritionist Denise Potter of Advanced Ketogenic Therapies who has helped me fine-tune my vegan ketogenic diet.

I have some background in Nutritional Psychology: I've taken "Introduction to Nutritional Psychology Methods" at the Center for Nutritional Psychology, I hold a certificate in Plant-Based Nutrition from the T. Colin Campbell Center for Nutrition Studies, the University of Canterbury's "Mental Health and Nutrition" course certificate with Professor Julia Rucklidge, and a B.A. from the University of California in English & American Literature.

I've always been interested in holistic health. I was an A.C.E.-certified personal trainer for several years and worked at a local gym. My memoir, the first book to cover postpartum bipolar disorder, was endorsed by Kay Redfield Jamison and 20+ other mental health luminaries.

So yes, I've been passionately interested about using the ketogenic diet for bipolar disorder. I'd like to respond to a couple of the assertions made in previous comments.

First of all, for those people who do choose to take meds for lifetime, there should be NO shame in doing that. Moreover, with the emerging field of Metabolic Psychiatry, it's looking like many people will not need to take meds for a lifetime. How cool is that?

Check out the field of Metabolic Psychiatry!

Metabolic Psychiatry has been booming since this thread was created last year and I hope with all my heart you will look into it!

Visit Dr. Chris Palmer's website
Visit Stanford's Center for Metabolic Psychiatry website
Check out "Bipolarcast" (about keto & bipolar) on Youtube
Check out "Metabolic Mind "on Youtube
Visit Dr. Georgia Ede's website.

Watch the "First Clinical Trial of Ketogenic Diet for Bipolar & Schizophrenia" findings with Stanford's Dr. Shebani Sethi, the director of the world's first Metabolic Psychiatry Clinic in Palo Alto, CA . It was posted in November, 2022.

The intro. is exciting - it states: "Early data from the first clinical pilot trial of the ketogenic metabolic intervention for serious mental illness shows promising results that could transform how the field of psychiatry understands and treats serious mental illness."

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5a2nBYcSN-8

Thanks for reading! ))